A Widening Gyre
by precious92
Summary: Rose and Albus are studying at Hogwarts. In their first-year, they faced many challenges, but they survived. Fast forward a few years, and their lives get more complex : attraction for the enemy, jealousy, heartbreak, and something dark, that has been brewing for a long time... Rated M for blood & gore Action/Supernatural/Romance/Comedy Albus/OC, Scorpius/Rose, cannon,OC
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**The Departure to Hogwarts**

The only train that was leaving the King's Cross Station at eleven o'clock was the gleaming red train called The Hogwarts Express. Smoke issued from the train cleared to reveal numerous parents and family members waving at their children who were aboard the train. One particular man, with jet-black hair and round glasses, was jogging alongside the train as he waved vigorously at a boy who could only be his son. The boy, possessing the same jet black hair, seemed anxious as he looked out at his father's form getting smaller and smaller, as the train gained speed.

Inside the train, sitting directly across him, was a girl named Rosie Weasley. She happened to be the cousin and best friend of the boy. She had bushy red hair and brown eyes that were intelligent and sharp.

"You know we will be going back for Christmas, right Al?" said Rosie.

The boy took his bottle green eyes off the scenery outside and frowned at her.

He said, "I'm not worried about being away from mom and dad." he paused and glimpsed at the glass door of the compartment, as though he was afraid that someone,particularly an annoying older brother, was outside eavesdropping on them, "I'm worried that I wouldn't live up their expectation. Do you remember all the stories that Uncle Ron and Uncle George said about what dad did during his school days. He was so cool and amazing. What if I can't do all those stuffs? Even James is admired 'cause he is funny and clever, unlike me."

"I don't consider breaking rules to deliver dragons and having an early death wish, to be cool nor amazing. Actually, I think it is quite horrid," said Rosie.

Al opened his mouth to retort, but at that moment the door of the compartment opened to reveal a boy with pale and messy, blonde hair. Behind him was a tall girl with coal-black hair cut really short and ivory complexion. Her eyes were a brilliant shade of green that almost seemed yellow, which made her look cunning and dangerous. The blonde boy realized that the compartment was occupied, so he made to turn around and leave. But then he did a double take and saw who the occupants_ really_ were.

"Well, well. I see a Weasel and a Potty. This should be interesting," sneered the blonde boy.

He looked over at Rosie and gave a challenging stare. Rosie stared back at him, accepting the challenge. She had hoped that this encounter would have happened later because she was really too excited about attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, to care to fight with this boy.

She opened her mouth to say something intelligent, but was cut off by another voice that said, "Really, Malfoy. That's all you've got? Although being who you are, I expected that from you."

Malfoy and the sly-looking girl parted and a red-haired boy with glasses and a mischievous smile came into view. Rosie was glad (for the first time) of that mischievous smile, because it mean that James Sirius Potter, her cousin and Albus's elder brother, was going to do what James does best and get rid of Scorpius Malfoy and his sidekick, whoever she was. Al got up and closed the door. There was a commotion going on in the corridor for a while,then it stopped and the door opened again, as James Potter entered the compartment. Along with him, a dark-skinned girl with curly brown hair entered the compartment.

"Hi, Roxanne!" said Rosie and Al, simultaneously, waving to their cousin.

Roxanne smiled at them. James sat beside Rosie and in a mocking voice, said, "Albus Severus Potter. Were you trying to pick up a fight with the likes of Malfoy? Shame on you."

"Oh, shut up James. By the way, what _did _you do to him? You know we still haven't reached school so you can't use magic," said an annoyed Albus.

"Nothing much. I just tested Uncle George's new invention called the Stunning Stick. Apparently, it works. It did quite a _stunning_ job," Everyone laughed. "Anyways, I was just coming from the compartment Victoire is in and –"

"-What were you doing with Vicky?" asked Rosie.

"I was teasing her about Teddy. It appears that, her friends didn't know about her _boyfriend. _It was quite hilarious," said James, laughingly. But no one else joined him as they thought he was really rude to do such thing.

"Really? Victoire and Teddy are together? How romantic!" said Roxanne Weasley, dreamily. The boys started making gagging noises when they heard the word "romantic".

"Well, I'm gonna join my friends, while you losers stay here do your childish talking. Bye," said James. Then he left.

Rosie exchanged looks with Albus and Roxanne, and sighed. Sometimes, James could be very exasperating. She looked out of the window and waited for the train to reach the Hogwarts Station. She really hoped that the rest of the day would pass better than it did in the train.

* * *

"I forgot how amazing the food in Hogwarts is," said James, stuffing chicken and bread in his mouth at the same time.

Rosie had to admit that the food was quite delicious. They were at the Great Hall having their first dinner. When the train finally arrived at the Station, she was surprised to see Hagrid, who was a family friend of theirs and made frequent visits to their house for dinner. As Uncle Harry had said, they didn't travel on horse-less carriages, but used boats to cross the Black Lake. Then a teacher, who introduced himself as Professor Sebastian Thorne, led them to the Great Hall for the Sorting Ceremony. It was a tense moment at that time. She was thankful of the fact that Albus and Roxanne were in the same house as her: Gryffindor. She also spotted a few kids she knew as a family friend of hers, like the Scamander twins, Lysander and Lorcan, who were sorted into Ravenclaw, as well as Hestia Longbottom, who became a fellow Gryffindor. After dinner, the students were allowed to mingle, so she and Albus joined the rest of her cousins and received their good wishes.

"Ah, I always knew we will end being a big happy family even in Hogwarts," teased James.

"No you didn't. You kept on saying that I would end up in Slytherin!" snapped Albus.

"And I'm not even done with you! How dare you embarrass me about Teddy!" barked Victoire.

"What?!" cried Dominique. "So all those times you were in our bedroom with Teddy, you guys were snogging? On our bed?" Everyone laughed as they watched Victoire turn red.

Rosie looked around at all her cousins and smiled inwardly. The Weasleys were a unique bunch. There was Victoire, the prettiest of them all, with her silver blonde hair and sparkly blue eyes. Her younger sister by a year, Dominique, looked exactly like Victoire, but possessed the trademark Weasley freckles on the bridge of her nose and was a little...spunky. Louise, the youngest child of Uncle Bill, was starting his third year. If Rosie was the smartest of all the Weasley cousins, then Louis was coolest and the most handsome. He looked very much like Uncle Bill but his looks were more enhanced by the fact that his mother was a part-Veela. Louis and James both had their arms around their best mate, Fred Weasley, Roxanne's elder brother. In fact, all the three looked very much alike with the ginger hair and their mischevious expressions. Then, there were Molly and Lucy. Lucy looked pretty much like Rosie, except that her eyes were blue and tiny, and her face was very flat. Molly, like Albus, Victoire, Dominique and Roxanne, did not the posses any of the Weasley characteristics. Instead, she had strawberry blonde hair and bright green eye.

So, this was her family: unbelievably huge, but completely tight when it came to family loyalty. She was really glad she born in this family, because the Weasley's were the most loveable people in the world.

* * *

"MERLIN'S BEARD!"

Rosie awoke with a start. She shielded her eyes from the morning sun rays, shooting through the window. She noticed Roxanne, her dorm mate, clutching her uniform and a look of horror on her face.

"What happened?" asked Rosie. She realized that her other dorm mates, Hestia Longbottom and a girl named Violet Jarvis, have also woken up.

"Fred. That's what has happened," growled Roxanne, "He did this to my uniform because I didn't let him use Lewinsky to send some stupid mail to his friends." Lewinsky was Roxanne's owl.

Rosie got up and had a closer look. She assured Roxanne that it wasn't _that_ bad.

"I can fix it. Here," said Rosie, taking the shirt. She raised her wand and tapped the shirt, while saying _'Tergeo'_. Roxanne swore that she will make Fred pay, then everyone started to get dressed as it was pointless to go back to sleep due to the fact that breakfast was in half an hour.

It has been about two months since Rosie and Albus first arrived in Hogwarts. Now, they have gotten into a regular routine. All of her classes were amazing, but her most favourite class was Transfiguration and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Transfiguration was taught by Professor Naomi Raymond. Professor Raymond was the Head of Hufflepuff, and was a fairly young lady with a serene personality. Professor Alaric Ballard, their Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, had a weak German accent and sarcastic attitude.

Professor Longbottom, their Herbology teacher and the Head of Gryffindor, was funny but very clumsy. Then there was Professor Binns, their History of Magic Teacher, Professor Flitwick, their Charms teacher as well as the Head of Ravenclaw, Professor Sinistra, their Astronomy teacher, and last, but not the least, Professor Thorne, their Potions teacher, who was also the Head of Slytherin and the Deputy Headmaster. He was fair, but strict.

The only person really annoyed by Albus and her, was Scorpius Malfoy. In Potions, he would try to flatter Professor Thorne, but in vain. At the end of every class he would make snide remarks about Albus, but mostly her. Rosie thought he hated her so much because all the teachers seemed to favour her, which was fair as she was the only person who actually studied for all her classes. One day, at the end of another fascinating lesson about the Curse of the Bogies, Malfoy was whispering to his sidekick, whose name was Sheherazade Layl. She caught a few words and phrases that could have been "sneak up on her", "curse" and "daughter of a mudblood". This was enough to fill her with rage.

"If you are really so weak, that you have to sneak up on me to curse, then you shouldn't bother. Because it would only prove to me and everyone else what a coward you are," hissed Rosie. From behind, Albus said nothing.

"So you want to duel, do you?" sneered Malfoy.

"I don't need to _duel_ you to know that I will be able to knock you out in the first five seconds," said Rosie, haughtily.

"_Now_ who's being the coward?"

This time, Rosie silently glared at Malfoy, while thinking. She knew that Uncle Harry would not like it if she accepted Malfoy's challenge. She glanced at Albus, who gave her a don't-you-dare look, which made up her mind.

"Fine. I'll do it," answered Rosie.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Dueling**** and Detention**

Rosie heard the snoring and the peaceful rhythmic breathing of her dorm mates. She crept out of her bed and headed for the Common Room where Albus waited for her. She had to persuade Albus to join as he was soundly against the dueling match. She spotted him dozing off in an armchair. He had a Quidditch practice, so he must be feeling very tired.

Quidditch had bothered Albus a lot. Dominique was the first of the Weasley's to get into the Quidditch team, then Louis, James, Fred and this year they had Albus and Roxanne to join the team. Victoire was too much into looks and fashion to care about Quidditch, while Molly and Lucy, like Rosie, were very studious. And as for herself, even if she wanted to she didn't think she and Quidditch would ever get along. Lily was an excellent Quidditch player even at such a young age and Hugo was fairly good at Keeping. So overall most of her family, excluding Victoire, Molly, Lucy and Rosie, seemed naturally gifted at Quidditch.

But Albus, was a complete diffferent case. He was good at playing Quidditch, but that's it. There was nothing exceptional about his playing. Lily and James were the star players, not Albus, _who looked more like his father_. This bothered him more than he let on. It took him a lot of hard work, and tiny bit of sympathy from the Captain to get him selected as a team member.

This year's Quidditch team was mostly made of her cousins. Dominique was the Seeker and this year's captain. James and Fred were the Beaters of the team; Louis was one of the Chasers. Albus and Roxanne were the other two Chasers. Both of Roxanne's parents were Quidditch player so, of course, she was the best Chaser Hogwarts could ever have. The Keeper was a first year named Tristan Wolfe, who seemed to instantly hit off with Albus and soon became one of his close friends.

Rosie went over to the peacefully sleeping Albus, and shook him awake. He had to blink hard to adjust to the dimly lit Common Room.

"Are you sure about this, Rosie?" asked a sceptical Albus. No, she wasn't, but she couldn't tell him that. So she just nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

"I can't believe that you, the daughter of Hermione Weasley, would break the rules! I mean I'd expect this from Hugo, but not you."

Rosie raised her eyebrows and said, "You seemed to forget, dear cousin, that I'm also the daughter of Ronald Weasley, who would never stand back take insults from those disgraceful Malfoys"

* * *

"Where is he?" asked Rosie, anxiously.

"You actually want him to come?" asked Albus, incredulously.

"Yes, because if he doesn't, then our little late night strut would be for nothing and we would be making a fool of ourselves."

"Er, but no one is here to see us make fools of ourselves."

She glared at him.

They were in an empty classroom farther away from the dormitory areas. It was near the ground level and was rather interesting because the interior looked like a forest, with the starry night in the place of the ceiling. Rosie couldn't fathom whether the sky was real or a representation of what was outside. There were a bunch of chairs scattered here and there. She didn't get why there had to be chairs, when it would be much nicer to just sit on the grass.

After a few minutes, they heard footsteps coming closer. Rosie gave a panicked look at Albus, and then both of them ran to the nearest bush and hid behind it. The door was left ajar, so they didn't hear the scrapping of the door as it opened.

"Anyone there?" asked a loud and familiar voice. The person entered the room, looked around a bit, and then went back outside. Rosie heard the retreating footsteps of the person.

"What was _she_ doing here?" asked Rosie. By _she_, she meant Loreli Hera. She was a second year student and the daughter of Headmaster Raphael Adrastos.

"Does it matter?" asked an irritated Albus, "Now, before we get into trouble, let's just go back. Then I can go back to sleep." Rosie didn't budge.

"Bloody hell, Rosie! Stop being childish!"

"Shut up, Potter. Before you wake the whole school up," barked Malfoy, as emerged from the slightly ajar door. Tagging along, was Layl.

"Here's the rules: there _is _no rule,"said Layl.

"I also must point out that no form harmful and injuring spell should-"began Rose.

But just then Malfoy shouted '_Expelliarmus_'. Rosie moved out of the way before it could hit her.

"That's not fair. We didn't even say start!" shouted Rosie.

But Malfoy already opened his mouth to shout another spell. This time Rosie was ready and she pointed at a bunch of chairs and shouted '_Diffindo_'. The chairs flew back at Malfoy, but he moved away in time. The chairs hit the trees and broke into pieces, then Malfoy tried to disarm her again.

This time, the spell hit her squarely and her wand flew away, out of her reach. She scrambled to get it back, when Malfoy shot another spell at her. She found her wand lying under the pieces of wood and dove for it. She raised her wand to attack Malfoy, when she noticed smoke issuing from behind her. She glanced at Malfoy, who smirked at her, then behind her. What she saw made her scream: the hem of her robe was on fire. She pointed her wand at the fire and screamed '_Aguamenti'_. A jet of water shot from the wand and extinguished the fire.

At this point, Rosie thought that she should end this duel once and for all. But before she could do anything, she heard him say '_Alohomora_'. The classroom door opened with a bang, that could awaken the whole school, and hit Rosie's back, throwing her face-forward to the ground.

"Hey! That wasn't fair!" yelled Al, coming forward to help. But Layl put her palm flat on his chest and pushed him back.

"Remember Potter, there are no rules. And if you even try to help her and hurt Scorpius, you'll have to go through me," hissed Layl.

This was the last straw she needed to get _really_ angry. "It's okay Al, I've got this."

She shouted '_Diffindo_' with all her might, and pointed at a bush in front of Malfoy. But before she could aim properly a presence behind her, distracted her, and instead of the spell hitting the bush, it hit Malfoy, who got blown off. He hit the trunk of a tree with a loud thud.

"Oh no, I didn't mean that!" exclaimed Rosie. She ran forward to Malfoy and saw that he had a head injury. Blood was gushing from his forehead and she noticed that the back of his head was also wounded from hitting the wall. She tried to help him sit up, but Malfoy shoved her away.

"Don't touch me!" snapped Malfoy.

"Please, let me help you. I can stop the bleeding. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. Really!" Malfoy glared at her but let her help him, anyway. She checked and saw that the wound wasn't _that_ bad. She pointed her wand at the wound and said '_Episkey_', and watched the wound heal.

"I think we've seen quite enough, don't you think Miss Weasley?" drawled a cold voice. Rosie turned around to see Professor Thorne. She assumed that it was his presence she felt when she was casting the spell. Albus, who was standing in the corner, puushed away Layl's hand on his chest, came forward to defend Rosie.

"No, Mr. Potter. I don't need your insignificant excuses. So you may as well shut your mouth, before getting into deeper trouble. Miss Layl had kindly informed me beforehand that you were getting back at Mr. Malfoy for a silly remark he made," said Professor Thorne, as he gazed at her with intensity.

Al glanced at Layl, and found her smirking. His jaws clenched in anger.

Thorne continued, "I want to remind you, Miss Weasley: you are not a _child_ anymore, and as a student of Hogwarts we don't expect you act like one. If you have had any problem with Mr. Malfoy's behaviour, you could have reported to me or Mr. Longbottom," drawled Professor Thorne. Albus and Rosie said nothing. "Now, you and Mr. Potter can follow me while I think of severe punishments that could be inflicted upon you to make sure you do not make this mistake _ever again_." He turned around and walked out of the room. Albus and Rosie followed close behind.

"Wait!" shouted a voice from behind them. They all turned back, including Professor Thorne, and saw that Malfoy was limping towards them. _He must have sprained his ankle as well_, thought Rosie, feeling guiltier than ever. "It wasn't their fault." Professor Thorne raised his eyebrows. "I meant, it wasn't _entirel__y_ their fault. I initiated the challenge and _we_ decided the time and place. During the duel, I nearly burned Weasley by getting her robes on fire."

There was a shocking and tense silence as Albus and Rosie stared open-mouthed at Malfoy. Malfoy? _The_ Malfoy, standing up for them?

"Well, this changes the situation slightly," said Professor Thorne, curtly. "Now you and Miss Layl can join them in detention, Mr. Malfoy. Oh, and before I forget. Twenty points from both Gryffindor and Slytherin. Now, I want all of you to go to bed and tomorrow at midnight you will meet me at the Potions Class . Oh, and Miss Rosie, seeing as you are responsible for his injury, kindly escort Mr. Malfoy to the infirmary. " Then he turned around and was gone in an instant.

There was an awkward silence, which was finally broken by Malfoy. "If you lot were thinking that this 'sacrifice' on my part was an act of kindness towards you, then you are mistaken. I only confessed because I didn't want to owe you for saving me."

Sheherazarde Layl glared at Malfoy, While Albus and Rosie looked indifferent.

"Oh, yeah, Malfoy, thanks for the _sacrifice_. That was _really_, very considerate of you. If you hadn't 'fessed up we would have been very lonely at detention," said Albus, sarcastically.

"Yeah, why did you have to do that? Now, _I'm_ stuck with _them_," said an irritated Layl, who stormed off without even helping her friend.

Then, there was silence again. Albus nudged Rosie and followed Layl, leaving Rosie and Malfoy alone. After a few moments of hesitation, she said, "Thank you. For what you did back there."

"I didn't do it for _you_," snarled Malfoy. "I'm going to bed."

A puzzled Rosie said, "But you must get your injury check. Let me help you to the infirmary."

Malfoy took a moment to contemplate, then said, "Okay, but no one must know of this."

* * *

"So, do you have any idea what we're supposed to do?" asked Albus. They were in the Potions Class.

"Nope," replied Rosie.

"Where's Malfoy?"

"No idea."

"Urgh! I'm tired of waiting. Maybe this is a hoax of some sort."

"Not in the least, Mr Potter," said Professor Thorne's voice, as he entered the classroom. Malfoy and Layl were also with him.

"All of you will be waiting here, for now. Then, Hagrid will come to pick you up for you detention," with that Professor Thorne turned and left.

There was silence as everyone tried figure out what exactly they were supposed to be doing for detention.

"Maybe we have to sweep the floors or clean a room or something," said Albus, hopefully.

"Maybe, you need to shut up, Potter, and actually wait for that oaf to come and tell us, before making stupid and cheap guesses," said an annoyed Malfoy. Albus glared at Malfoy, but didn't say anything. After a few moments, Hagrid entered the room, all cheery and excited.

"Come along, chil'ren. Ye ain't wanna miss this. It's gonna be very excitin' night," said Hagrid. "Ah, reminds me of the days yer parents were li'l"

"Er, Hagrid? Where exactly are we going?" asked a sceptical Rosie.

"Why, to the Forbidden Fores' , of course," said Hagrid, simply.

"WHAT!?" shouted Rosie, Albus, Malfoy and Layl.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**The Forbidden Encounter**

Rosie did not like darkness. Especially if the darkness was because of giant sized trees blocking the moonlight at midnight; and especially if it was in the Forbidden Forest. She tried to stay as close to Albus as she could, but every now and then she would trip over a tree root. She still wasn't accustomed to the darkness of the forest. In other words, she hated being here but knew this was her punishment for being such a fool.

" 'kay, kids. This is it. Yeh lot will be divided inter groups o'three. One group will go with Fang and the other with me. Albus an' Layl comes with me an' Rosie an' Malfoy will go with 'im," said Hagrid. Rosie didn't understand why she and Albus are being put into different groups, so she opened her mouth to ask, but Layl beat her to it.

"Why can't Scorpius and I go with Fang, and you lot go together?" asked Layl.

" 'cause if you an' Malfoy go together , there's a chance you both will run away. Can' take tha' risk now, can we?" said Hagrid.

"Fine!" snapped Layeel.

"Okay, now tha' this is sorte' i'll tell yeh the task. You lot will have ter find a dead spider. A large dead spider. It's venom is precious to yer Professor Thorne so we've gotta extrac' it. Got it?" said Hagrid.

"A-a-a sp-pid-der? L-like a-an ac-crom-mantul-lla?" asked Rosie, completely shaking. She hated spiders. She hated their icky hairy legs. She hated their multiple bright and scary eyes. She mostly hated their pincers. Everything about them was icky and scary.

"Yeah, tha's the one," replied Hagrid, oblivious to Rosie's discomfort. " Good job, Rosie. Knew yeh had the brains of yer mum!"

* * *

They had a difficult time walking, now that they were deep inside the forest. They have been walking for a long, or so it seemed to Rosie. Every passing moment, she felt like she was being watched by the creatures of the woods. Now and then, they heard peculiar noises but they couldn't find the source of the noise, or they simply didn't want to. Rosie tried to start conversation with Malfoy just to stop herself from thinking terrible thoughts, but Malfoy refused to answer and glared at her. He either didn't feel like talking to her or he didn't care to ease her discomfort. After what seemed like days, they came to a small clearing lit by the silvery moonlight. The clearing was carpeted with overgrown grass and wild flower. The sight would have been quite beautiful, if there wasn't a large amorphous shape on the other side of the clearing.

"Is that the giant spider? I didn't think that when the oaf called it a giant spider, it would be larger than me!" exclaimed Malfoy.

"I-it's t-techn-nic-cal n-name is A-acr-rom-mant-tul-lla," said Rosie, shaking all over again.

"I know what it's called, Weasel," snapped Malfoy.

Malfoy started walking forward, his back robes rustling in the wind.

"What are you doing?!" asked Rosie, completely horrified.

"I'm getting the venom out!," yelled Malfoy. "I thought that was what were supposed to do. Honestly, Weasel, for a smart person you are quite a dimwit."

Rosie was so frightened, that she couldn't even retort at his insult. Just then, a giant shadow appeared that was taller than the trees.

"HAGGER!" roared a horrible animalistic voice.

"Good lord!" whispered Rosie, dumbstruck.

Malfoy, who was almost close to the spider, froze. He, then, scanned the clearing to look for the source of the disturbance. He spotted a giant humanoid emerging from the other side of the clear.

"What in the world, is a giant doing here?!"exclaimed Scorpius.

"HAGGER!"

"What is 'hagger'?" asked he, turning to look at Rosie. But Rosie looked past him with her eyes bugged out.

"We have to get out of here fast," said Rosie, her panic returning.

In his head, Scorpius came to the conclusion that Weasley had gone complete bonkers. Of course, that was before he heard the clicking of the pincers.

"WHERE HAGGER!"

_I see, the giant knows how to speak_, thought Scorpius.

"I think I'm going to faint!" whispered Rosie.

The giant spider that had been supposedly dead was standing upright in front of them, his multiple bright red eyes glowing in the dark and his pincers gleaming.

"Bloody hell! We are dead!" exclaimed Scorpius. "You know what, forget about that stupid venom. I'll take a thousand detentions to this, any day. Come on Weasel, let's run!"

And he took off, running past Rosie, and expecting her to follow. But Rosie could not seem to get her legs to start running. She was completely frozen to the ground, staring at the eerie red eyes. The giant spider, spotting her, marched towards her: his prey. Rosie was completely paralyzed with shock and fear. It felt like the world had just burped out all the monsters and combined them into this giant hairy arachnid. She could feel death creeping towards her, tagging along with the Acromantula. She didn't even bid farewell to her parents or Albus. She had so much to do! She couldn't die now! There was so much to-

THUD! The next thing she knew, she was knocked _hard_ sideways to the ground. For a moment, it felt like all the air was sucked out of her lungs. Then, someone started to drag her along the grass. She struggled as hard as she could to free herself, until she heard, "Stop struggling, Weasel! I'm saving your life, pighead!"

She stopped struggling and let Malfoy drag her to safety. He reached a large tree with a hollow trunk and pushed Rosie inside. He looked back at the spider and let out a heavy sigh. The spider had spotted the giant was skittering towards its new prey. The spider let out a screeching noise, then started to shoot out webs at the giant.

"STOP THA'! YER HURTIN' GRAWP!" bellowed Hagrid , as he immerged into the clearing, running towards the spider, which was about the same size as he was.

"Oh, no! HAGRID"

Scorpius was shoved aside, as Rosie attempted to run towards Hagrid. He caught her in the nick of time and pulled her back into the safety of the hollow.

"Did the spider eat your brain away, Weasel? You can't go there or you'll be killed. Remember, you owe me, now that I've saved your hide twice!"

"I don't care! I have to go to Hagrid and help him!"

Malfoy looked clearly frustrated right then. But Rosie really didn't care; Albus was out there as well, and she had to find him. She tried to shove him, but he was too strong. They struggled for a long time, after they heard another familiar tone yell, "Rosie! Are you there?!"

"We're inside the hollow tree!" Rosie yelled back. The entrance of the hollow was temporarily overshadowed by the appearance of Albus, and right behind him, Layl.

"Come on, you both! We've got to get out of here! Hagrid's order!" said Albus, urgently. He pulled Rosie out of the hollow and entered the dense forest again, tagging Rosie along with him. Rosie turned back to see what Hagrid was doing, but her view was blocked by a grimacing Malfoy.

"Don't look back!" snapped Malfoy. "You don't need to see this."

She gave a worried look at Albus, who reassured her that Hagrid would be fine, but kept on going. She knew that once she reached the castle they could get help for Hagrid, so she increased her speed. The four scared and worried first-years ran in the direction of the castle, as if their lives depended on it. When they finally crossed the threshold of the forest, and came into the large Hogwarts moonlit grounds, they slowed their paced to catch breathe. They didn't entirely stop running until they entered the castle.

"We have to find the Headmaster!" said a panicked Rosie.

"Maybe we should just talk to Professor Longbottom," said Albus.

"No! We need Professor Adrastos. He'll know what to do. He is the Headmaster, for god's sake!"

Scorpius thought that he should interrupt, to tell them that priority right then was to inform an authority, no matter who it was. But before he could voice his thoughts, someone else interrupted him.

"What, in the name of Merlin's pants, is going on here?! Why is there such a commotion in the middle of the night?! Why are _first-year_ students out of bed?! And, why am I hearing howling from the Forbidden Forest?! Explain!"

The four first-years, who thought they couldn't get into enough trouble, turned around to meet the biggest threat of them all: their Headmaster. The events of the night hadn't ended, yet.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The Headmaster

The man standing in front of them, with a stern expression, was blessed with good looks. He possessed ebony hair, spotted with grey streaks, dark brown eyes, and strong jaws that accentuated his face. He was tall and broad. Every inch of him screamed authority. His age, barely apparent in the form of wrinkles and grey streaked beard, added character to his appearance.

Yet his life was not so kind. His first wife was a queer old lady, who practiced the Extinct Arts, as everyone called it. The Extinct Arts was one of the primitive form of modern day magic, also known as Paganism. Nobody knew what happened to her or how she died. But after her death, Raphael Adrastos married five times. Each of his wife died before a month was over. One died of a severe case of dragon pox, the other died while crashing on a broomstick, and the most recent one died four years ago when she was crossing a Muggle a street and a car hit her. All this while, he never produced another heir; his one and only child, a daughter, was borne off his first wife. And she was a second-year student at Hogwarts.

But whatever people thought, nobody could deny that there was something eerie about both the mother and daughter. People feared him because of his "curse", but that did not stop his rising status. He hadn't married since his sixth wife's death; maybe he realized that he was cursed; maybe his daughter put an end to it; or maybe he just gave up on love. But whatever the reason was, it caused him to change into this authoritative and serious being.

The four shocked first-years did not immediately reply.

Then Layl, clearing her throat, said, "Well, Professor, we were supposed to be collecting spider venom from a dead spider, as our detention punishment, but could not do so, because of the interruption of a giant. And, also, the spider wasn't dead, as we thought it would be."

Silence followed. The Headmaster gave a long look at Layl, who dared to stare back.

"You children really do have quite an active imagination" said the Headmaster, coldly.

"We aren't lying. If you don't send someone to help that oa- , I mean, Professor Hagrid, then you will lose a member of your staff," said Layl.

"Really?" asked the Headmaster, calmly. He did not give any indication of losing temper because a student just dared to counter argue him, only mild amusement showed on his face.

"Is there any problem, Headmaster?" asked a familiar tone of voice coming from behind the Headmaster.

"Professor Thorne, you gave me a fright," said Professor Adrastos, not looking particularly surprised. "Do listen to these first-years! They have an amzing story-telling talent!"

Scorpius thought that it was very rude of the Headmaster to not believe them, so he decided to take the matters into his own hands.

"Professor Thorne, there's a giant on the lose in the Forbidden Forest!" he exclaimed.

"And it's attacking Hagrid!" helped Albus.

And as if to prove those poor first years right, a giant roar echowed the Forest.

"YOU HURT HAGGER! GRAWP HURT SPIDEY!"

Rosie and Albus exchanged worried looks. Rosie had a sudden suspicion that "Hagger" was Hagrid. She remembered her mother saying that Hagrid was a part-giant. Also, he seemed to have a knack for monsters. So it wouldn't surprise Rosie if Hagrid actually had a pet giant. If what the giant bellowed was right, then Hagrid was seriously injured!

Scorpius turned to see the Headmaster's expression. He was relieved and a little satisfied to find worry and serious determination to take over his expression.

"Sebastian, Please get Neville, Alaric and Naomi. I will go ahead and try to control the situation," commanded Professor Adrastos. Both the Professors noded to each other and with a swish of their robes, they turned around to go the opposite directions. Halfway through his run, Professor Adrastos turned around and looked at the four first-years.

"Go to my Office and wait in front of the gargoyle,"he said, sternly. With that, he dashed towards the dense Forest and disappeared.

* * *

"Ms. Layl, why don't you update me about tonight's occurrences, details included, please?" asked the Headmaster.

As Layl narrated the incidents, Rosie took that time to look around the office. She had never been to the Headmaster's office. It was quite grand and elaborate in design. Large Portraits of previous Headmasters hung on the wall behind the enormous desk. She spotted Headmaster Dumbledore and Snape, Albus's namesakes. They were, of course, sleeping soundly. On the desk lay a pile of parchments and books, and other necessary stationeries.

There were a number of bookshelves on the side walls. Rosie would have loved to look at the titles. Her mother once said that one can discover a lot about a person from his library; his favourite book would be the one that is most tattered and worn; if he wasn't a book reader, the bookshelves would be filled with dust; his collection would reveal the types of subjects he was interested in. No two persons can have an identical library, just like no two individual are the same.

On the very top of one of the shelves was a glass container with what looked like an amulet floating in oblivion. The amulet was an encircled star, coated with gold. It was very large in size. Rosie's sense of curiosity increased as she stared at the amulet.

Without thinking, she asked, "Professor Adrastos, what does that amulet represent?"

There was a shocked silence as everyone stared at her as if she had just grown another head. The headmaster, however, gazed at the direction of the amulet, then said, "That, Miss Weasley, is called a pentagram. Its five edges, point to the five ancient elements: air, water, earth, fire and spirit. It is a very important part of, what Muggles and Wizards alike call, Paganism."

"What do you mean by "is"? Aren't, er, _Pagans_ extinct?" asked Rosie. Her mother used to tell her stories about the initiation of magic, and that Pagans were among the first of kinds to use magic, although of primitive nature.

"Not at all. In fact, my deceased wife was among the consistent practitioners of this magic. We might not understand their fascination in this kind of magic, but it still appeals to many people who do not consider flicking your wand and using some jumbled up words. They find our kind of magic temporary and fleeting."

"So your, er, _deceased_ wife believed in archaic magic?" asked Layl, cynically. The Professor's answers were interrupted by a new voice:

"Father, is there something wrong?" asked the serene tone of Loreli Hera.

They all turned and looked at the second-year. She was wearing a black silk nightgown that contrasted with her ivory complexion and silver hair. Yet, her eyes were pitch dark, like the endless bottom of a cauldron. She looked almost dazed, as if she was being possessed. She walked towards them like a ghost.

"Nothing is wrong, Loreli. What are you doing so late at night?" asked the Professor, affectionately.

"Not a thing. I couldn't sleep. But what are these children doing here?" asked Loreli, her tone losing the serene quality.

"They have been caught roaming in the corridors."

"Well, make sure they are punished severely," She paused and looked at each of the four children, then said, "Well, not him," suddenly, she pointed at Malfoy, "I want him to stay safe."

Then she gave the most dazzling smile to Malfoy, who looked completely out of his elements right then. Then Loreli Hera vanished right in front their eyes, leaving them to ponder on what just.

"Now that you have met Loreli, I shall bit you all farewell."

* * *

"Well, that was interesting," whispered Albus, as they walked towards the portrait of the Fat Lady.

Rosie was relieved to see that the Fat Lady was still there because she couldn't handle any more misfortunes for tonight. She even dreaded telling her parents about tonight's occurrences.

"_Mudblood!_" said Rosie, to the drowsy Fat Lady.

"Go-uh-in" mumbled the Fat Lady, and the portrait swung open. Then, contemplatively, Rosie said, "I don't like the Headmaster's daughter. She is very bizarre. I think she got her bizarre quality from her mother, who is another peculiar specimen. It is easy to believe that his wife had cursed him to live the rest of his life as a widower. Or, it could be the daughter killing all his other wives, because she did not want to share her "daddy". She seems like a possessive person."

When they reached the common room, she paused to look for a book she left there. She found it under a pile of cushions, probably the work of James.

"I am really, very tired to my bones. Can we not talk about what happened in details?" asked Albus, yawning. "Well, goodnight." Then he disappeared behind the boy's dormitory entrance.

"Goodnight, Al," said Rosie absent-mindedly. She stared at the front cover of the book she was holding: it was _A History of Magic._ She opened the book to the index page, even though she knew it by heart. _Curious, very curious_, she thought, _this book (that has every historical event of magic, in detail) has nothing on the ancient times long before Merlin. What was so terrible about that time period that it had to be hidden...?_

* * *

The next day, Albus and Rosie visited Hagrid. Malfoy and Layeel have gone back to being their old selves and completely ignored them. They had a small chat with the Headmaster who excused them of punishment, this time. As soon as Hagrid opened the door, they knew he had had a hard time last night in keeping the situation in control. His face was filled with large purple bruises and he had a serious cut across his forehead that could leave a scar.

"Hey, now you look like dad," said Albus with a nervous laugh, probably trying to make Hagrid feel better. Rosie glared at him. This was not the time to joke around, and Albus should know that.

"Yeah, yer dad'll be proud," said Hagrid, gruffly.

"Hagrid, what happened last night? What was a giant doing there?" asked Rosie. She tried to find a comfortable spot on Hagrid's enormous armchair, while waiting for a reply.

"Yer mum'n dad din't tell yer tha' I have a brother? Name's Grawp. Lives in the mountains, he does. Better fer him. Living like a giant, as he should. Hermione help'd ter get a spell on the cave he lives. The spell protects 'im from outsiders and no one'll see him. It stops 'im from gettin' out as well. Bu' last night someone's bin doin' some tamperin' on the spell. So Grawp got out an' went' lookin' fer me. 'E calls me Hagger, that little runt," he said.

"What about the spider?" she asked.

"Turns out, the spide' wasn' dead. That 'airy crawler nearly killed Grawp. Then, things went black as Askaban's knocker, when that crawlin' brute shot webs outta his hole. If Thorne an' Raymon' din't 'elp me, i'd been toast. We fought tha' mean brute and killed it. Then, I burn'd it so that it doesn't show its bloody face again. Later,tho' , I found 'nother dead spider. Don't know who did it."

"You found another acromantula?" asked Rosie.

"Yeah, but this one was brutally murder'd and its mouth was cut open. It was a terrible sight, Rosie. Dunno who would do that."

"That is a mystery," said Rosie, pondering.

But for the rest of the year, Rosie still could not find out who de-spelled Grawp's cave, or who killed the other spider. This was a mystery left unsolved to her, and, as the years went by, this incident was pushed to the backdrop of her memories...


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Friends and Foes**

_Five years Later_

At the corner of the dimly lit library, by the large stained-glass window, was a girl who had blossomed into her womanhood quite well. Her once red bushy hair, had transformed into auburn curls that swirled all the way down her waist. The face, that was once pale with freckles, has bloomed into a glowing rosy nature. Her eyes that were once innocent, dull, brown, had gained wisdom over the years and acquired a sparkle that was welcomed by her friends and family. Rosie was no more called so. She was referred to as Rose Weasley.

Rose gazed out of the window, pondering on trivial thoughts. The month of December was always a delight to her. The ground was carpeted with layers of snow that seemed to radiate in the dimness of twilight. Here and there, children were making snowmen and having snowball fights. She kept on gazing out, as the hours ticked by and the stars appeared in the sky, glowing amidst the pure blackness of night. The count of students began to decline, as more and more students started to get ready for bed. Her hands lay lazily over her Arithmancy problems, which were complete. She always liked to arrive at the library at this time, sit by the window and observe the surrounding while doing her homework. She liked the gloomy and quiet environment of the library. It gave her space to think.

"Hello, _Roza_, how are you doing, in this cold night?" asked a caressing, smooth, voice that gave her goose bumps. She shifted her attention towards the speaker. The speaker was a handsome man who, like Rose, when through similar transformation. Except that, he looked much more like an untouchable Greek god after the change. His golden blonde hair, glowing even in the dimly lit room, was still in its messy state, but this time it was intentional. His once pallid face, tanned as a result of the hours spent outside practicing Quiditch as a Seeker. Yet, his eyes were the same sparkling sky blue colour that always seemed to captivate her.

"I am working on my Arithmancy problems," answered Rose.

"_Roza_, you always work too hard. Don't you know how to have fun? It's nearly Christmas," said Scorpius, with that same caressing tone.

"I wouldn't expect you to understand, Malfoy as your idea of fun would be snogging girls all time. I find that utterly disgusting," retorted Rosie.

Malfoy raised his eyebrows, and said, "And yet, I still seem to be getting the highest marks in class. Like you."

Rose did not have a reply. Yes, he was the one of the smartest student in their year. The fact always infuriated her. He got to have fun _and_ace in tests, while she was in the library working her arse off to be ahead of him. Not only that, he was also the one of the best seeker in the school, the other one being her cousin, Lily Potter.

"Well, why don't I show you the ways you can have fun in the corner of a library," said Malfoy, then he occupied the chair beside her, and violated her private space. As he moved closer to her a tiny medallion slipped out from inside his shirt. It was the same symbol as the one she saw years ago, in the Headmaster's Office. This time she knew exactly what it meant.

"What is that?" asked Rose in a whisper, still affected by his closeness.

Malfoy got momentarily distracted as looked down at his medallion. He gazed back at her, his charismatic vibe disappearing, and said in a flat voice, "It's nothing."

"You are a part of them?" asked Rose, moving away from him as if he was a hideous spider.

"Yes, is there a problem with that?" asked a defensive Malfoy.

"Of course there is. Don't you know that what they do is wrong? And that Loreli girl is gone bonkers, quite frankly-"

"Loreli happens to be my girlfriend, Rose," said Malfoy, coldly.

"Oh," said Rosie, "Well in that case, have fun with your wonderful girlfriend. I hope you guys enjoy cutting your hands and drinking each other's blood."

Then she hastily gathered her books and ran out of the library as fast as she could, leaving a confused and angry Malfoy behind.

When she entered the Gryffindor common room, most of the chamber was empty. She went over to the armchair beside the fireplace and sat down. As she stared at the burning and crackling fire, she went over what happened in the library.

Since third-year, Malfoy had stopped pestering her and Albus. And since fourth- year, he started flirting with every girl in this school, including her. He had, since then, became the official rake of Hogwarts. Rumours stated that he visited Italy, his mother's home country, during that summer and returned as an Italian Casanova. Not only that, his marks suddenly started looking very good, and now he was neck-to-neck with Rose in having the highest grades in Hogwarts, since Hermione Weasley.

What she didn't understand was that, why would he flirt with her one second, and fight with her the next. She knew he hated her.

More importantly, why was she, Rose, affected by his presence? Didn't she make it clear on that fated afternoon in their third year what she thought of him...?

* * *

"You study too much, Rose. I know you want to beat Malfoy. But, sometimes you should try to get out and have fun," said Albus, as he sat beside her for breakfast.

"Oh, so you must have met Malfoy," Rose replied.

"What?" asked Albus.

"He said the same thing when I encountered him in the library," muttered Rose.

"Malfoy was in the library," asked Albus, bewildered.

"There is nothing shocking about it," hissed Rose

"Er, yes there is. Malfoy never goes to the library," said Albus

"So, how do you think he is able to do his essays that require plenty of research?" challenged Rose.

"I don't know," mumbled Albus.

"Well, he does. And in addition to that, the library is a great place to perform his, er, affairs, according to him," said Rose.

"Whom are you lot talking about?" asked Roxanne, as she joined them for breakfast.

Before Rose could reply, Albus cut in, and said, "Malfoy. He actually visits the library."

"I knew that. The other day I spotted him snogging Loreli Hera. They are supposedly a couple, now. They suite it each other, you know?" said Roxanne, as she bit into a jam toast. Just, then there was sudden hushed atmosphere surrounding the Great Hall.

"Oh Look. Here comes the royal cavalry," said Albus, boringly.

Rose knew exactly what to expect. She didn't even bother to watch the spectacle, as a group of students entered the Great Hall. They looked exactly like the other students, except that they had a defiant look on their faces, and their robes were marked with an enormous M. They were _The Mágisses_, an occult group of The Extinct Arts practitioners.

This group was founded last year. The leader and the founder of the group was, none other than, Loreli Hera. They were very secretive about what they did, and no one was allowed to speak of their practices. People, wondered why no one reveal anything about it when, one day, a fifth-year made the mistake of doing so. The next day she had a severe case of spattergoits. After that, no member dared to speak about it, and to be doubly sure that they didn't reveal things by mistake, they shut themselves from the outside world and never spoke to the other students. Rose knew that once they were a part of it, it was very difficult for them to get out. The ones who did had their memories about their secret meetings erased. What she didn't understand is, why would anyone feel compelled to join this group in the first place? There were a lot of rumours that, their kind of magic can allow them to excel at everything, but she didn't believe in such nonsense.

The thing that most surprised her was that, no teacher complained about them, or even acknowledged their existence. Once she asked Professor Raymond, and her reply was, "Those kids just want to be a part of something and belong to it. It doesn't harm them physically, so we can't report. And the rumour you hear about their memories being erased is an utter nonsense. As long as you don't mix with them, you are fine, Miss Weasley."

Rose really couldn't care less about them, until now that is. She thought it was unbelievably idiotic of Scorpius to join them. A person of his intellectual should have known better than to fall for this nonsense. She tried to spot Scorpius among the throng of the cult members, but she couldn't locate him.

Then, Roxanne whispered to her the whereabouts of Scorpius, "He must be with having breakfast with his girlfriend and her father."

Professor Adrastos seldom feasted in the Great Hall. Occasionally, when a guest arrived at Hogwarts for the day, he joined his colleagues. Otherwise, he took his meals in his private chamber with his daughter, who also owned a private bedroom, even though she was a Slytherin and had every right to slumber in the Slytherin dormitories among her peers.

"Good morning, my fellow friends," said the cheery voice of Hestia.

"Good morning, Hestia," said Roxanne and Rose, simultaneously.

"Hullo," mumbled Albus, before going back to eating his breakfast.

"It seems as though, I have missed the, er, royal cavalry," she said, looking at the now seated members of the cult. "Did I miss anything special?"

"Malfoy is a part of it and Rose is completely furious about it," said Roxanne, bluntly.

"I am not!" exclaimed Rose.

"You are not what, _Roza_?"

_Speak of the devil_, thought Rose, _and the devil shall appear_. She turned around and glanced at Malfoy, before dismissing him. She did not want to be rendered speechless by his looks. Again.

"Rose is furious about you being a part of something that hates a lot," said Roxanne, matter-of-factly.

"Shut up, Roxy!" snapped Rose. She knew how Roxanne despised that nickname. Rose was satisfied to see Roxanne wince as she said that.

"Really?" asked Malfoy, sardonically, "Well, it's not up to her to decide what I can do and what I can't."

"You can do whatever you want for all I care," snapped Rose.

"Here they go again," said Roxanne and Albus.

"Well, you guys can do your bickering here, as long as Malfoy stays a couple of feet away from you, Rose. And I will take my leave, because I have no intention of listening to your squabbling," said Albus.

"I'll join you," said Hestia, quickly. Albus looked surprised at this, but didn't say anything. He had a tiny smile on his face as he and Hestia left.

"We don't fight all the time," mumbled Rose.

"No we don't," said Malfoy, amused. "Only when we see each other."

Malfoy sat beside her and took a helping of treacle tart. Rose went back reading _The Legend of Ciaran Wolfram_. After ten minutes, she glanced at him and found him watching her. She heaved a sigh, shut her book, and turned towards him.

"Why are you a heart-breaker?" asked Rose.

Malfoy seemed taken aback by her question, but he composed himself.

He kept on staring at her for a few moments, before replying, "_Roza_, a guy becomes a heart-breaker, after his heart gets broken."

Then, she asked the obvious question, "Who broke your heart?"

"Well, that's for me to know and you to find out. Anyways-"

"IF YOU WOULD'VE STOPPED BEING SO BLOODY STUPID AND BLIND THIS WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED."

"IF YOU ARE SO SMART, THEN WHY DON'T CLEAN THAT YOURSELF, WITHOUT BOTHERING ME."

Rose and Malfoy looked at each other. They knew exactly whose voices those belonged to. They dashed towards the Entrance Hall and found it crowded with people watching the spectacle. In the middle of all this were Sheherazade Layl and Albus Potter facing each other with identical murderous expression. Beside Albus was Hestia, looking very nervous as she tried to calm Albus down. Rose and Malfoy fought through the crowd as they tries to get to Albus and Sheherazade.

"Albus!" exclaimed Rose, as she got to her cousin's side. "What the hell is going on?"

"She spilled ink on my clothes! On purpose!"exclaimed Albus. Rose simply looked at him.

"That bitch just ruined my clothes on purpose and you are just standing there and looking at me?" asked Albus, incredulous.

"Shut your bloody trap, Potter, before I hex you," barked Layl.

"Albus, stop being stubborn," said Rose reasonably.

"Well, thank you for taking my side, cousin," said Albus, sardonically.

"Thanks, Weasel, but I don't need a mudblood's daughter to defend me!" barked Layl.

Albus had heard enough. He pulled out his wand to attack Layl, but she was too quick for him. She pointed her wand directly at Albus. She opened her mouth and yelled, "_Sectumsempra_".

Rose watched as the spell flew from Layl's wand, towards Albus. She couldn't let this happen. She ran towards Albus and stood in front of him, with her arms spread wide. At that moment, she heard a slashing sound and her abdomen began to sting with pain. She clutched her abdomen to stop the pain and looked down. maroon viscous liquid was pouring out from between her fingers.

Dizziness hit her instantly, as the world started to become blurry and she lost conscious.


End file.
